Search engines typically receive a search query from a user and provide search results that are responsive to that query. For example, if a user entered the word “Boston” into a search engine, the search engine may provide a listing of search results that include resources that relate to Boston Mass., Boston Electronics, Boston Book Stores, etc.
Some search engines provide a query suggestions feature to provide a user with a listing of one or more suggested queries that relate to the user's initial query. The listing of suggested queries can be provided, for example, in a drop-down list. For example, as the user begins typing a query into a search interface, a drop-down list can be displayed with the suggested queries that correspond to the text inputted by the user. For example, if the user typed in “m” and “o”, the suggested queries may include “Montana,” “Mom's Diner,” “Mortgage calculator,” etc. The user can then select one of the suggested complete queries to obtain search results that are responsive to the suggested query or the user can continue inputting their desired query to obtain search results responsive to the desired query. When a suggested query is selected, the terms in the suggested query, e.g., “Mom's” and “Diner,” will typically be sent back to the search system. The search system will then provide a listing of search results that reference resources matching the terms “Mom's” and “Diner.” However, providing the best results based solely on query terms may not be optimal because additional context is provided by the selection of a suggested query, both implicit and explicit.